ebay as a hobby

[keziak]

Anyone here sell on ebay as a hobby, not as a business? I am trying to come up with a model in which I keep my hand in due to having stuff I can't just list on Amazon instead (such as lots). I am not quite ready to wholesale throw the stuff into a ravine. If nothing else I still have a ton of manga to do something with. Also anime series and some miscellaneous other stuff.

What does selling as a hobby mean to you? Strictly limiting your number of listings and/or the time you spend on the site? 

I am thinking of cutting back to listing only one day a week and not Sunday so I can take more of my weekends off. Maybe just 10 auctions a week or whatever. No more listing single books and gradually removing the listings. Maybe sales will end up being so low I'll finally take the plunge and close up shop. I just don't want to run two full-bore businesses anymore.

[keziak]

I think that is correct. I did some research because when I've bought on there there is no whiff of sales tax. I assume it's the same deal on Craigslist.

[sin-n-dex]

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@mam98031 wrote:

@sin-n-dex 

I'm not sure what to tell you.  You are fully aware that selling on the internet puts your Disability income at risk, yet you still do it.  That is a choice you have made.  Hopefully they will never audit you, but if they do it seems you are risking a lot to sell here.

I wish you the best.

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You misunderstood. I'm not receiving disability income right now. I have pending surgery and need 2 or 3 weeks off of work later. They're saying my store can't be active during this time even on time away mode if receiving sales. I'm not working if on time away so I don't see what their issue is. Ebay allows 15 days on time away while sales still happen. 

C.

[winterpalace25]

Mam,

I'm pretty sure that $400 number is the threshold for having to pay Self Employment tax. If your Profit is $399.00, you don't have to pay that tax, and if it is $400.00 or more, you do. The IRS expects you to pay income tax on all profit, not just over $400.00.

[steve_stuff]

To sell and spend as little time as possible doing it, and thus having as 'fixed' a schedule as possible -

Only auctions that always start [and thus end] on the same day - a friday or saturday - so buyers have friday or saturday to monday morning to pay.  Best cast one trip monday to ship.

NO fixed price or taking offers as they sell 'willy-nilly'

[keziak]

thank you, those are good insights. My situation is different in that my main venue is Amazon and I ship every day. Ebay shipping tends to be clustered because I try to do auctions twice a week not every day. If I cut back to doing auctions one day a week it could help. I usually do Thurs and Sunday which is kind of tough in that I am busy on Thurs with other work so not much time to list auctions, and doing it on Sunday cuts out a day when maybe I could do some non-work things like gardening.

[steve_stuff]

OK, after reading your reply - disregardful everything we just said [typed] - We gave you the ship one day set up - With your deal, only way we see to cut down time spent is shipping once a week and packing everything the day before. That at least bunches stuff together.

[mam98031]

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@keziak wrote:

I think that is correct. I did some research because when I've bought on there there is no whiff of sales tax. I assume it's the same deal on Craigslist.

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Sure there was for sellers that had buyers items shipped within the seller's state they ship from.  If the seller's state charged a sales tax, it was always their responsibility to collect and remit those taxes.

In 2019 things started changing and MFLs [marketplace facilitator laws] came into being.  And one by one States with sales tax started passing their own MFLs.  The first state was Washington in 2019.  Then over the next two years all affected states followed.

Craigs list is selling locally.  If the seller is set up as a business in that state, they need to collect and remit sales taxes.  Likely many don't, but that doesn't mean they aren't suppose to.

[mam98031]

Just close all your listings and then you can repost them when you get healthy again.  You can use the bulk editor to more easily accomplish this.

I sincerely hope your surgery is a success and you have a full and fast recovery !!!  😍

[mam98031]

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@winterpalace25 wrote:

Mam,

I'm pretty sure that $400 number is the threshold for having to pay Self Employment tax. If your Profit is $399.00, you don't have to pay that tax, and if it is $400.00 or more, you do. The IRS expects you to pay income tax on all profit, not just over $400.00.

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You are correct.

[dbfolks166mt]

I actually prefer electronic payments for MP.  I'm just getting started and books are a hard nut to crack there. I'm not sure, do PP and Venmo have threshholds for sending 1099s or do t hey do it for any amount?

     To the best of my knowledge, and based on the 1099's I have received, all third party financial processors follow the current Federal and State laws with regards to the 1099-K issuance threshold. I am in VA so that limit is $600 and I get 1099-K's from multiple third party financial processors. 

[dbfolks166mt]

thank you, those are good insights. My situation is different in that my main venue is Amazon and I ship every day. Ebay shipping tends to be clustered because I try to do auctions twice a week not every day. If I cut back to doing auctions one day a week it could help. I usually do Thurs and Sunday which is kind of tough in that I am busy on Thurs with other work so not much time to list auctions, and doing it on Sunday cuts out a day when maybe I could do some non-work things like gardening.

     You can always use the schedule feature to have the auction start on whatever day you want and at whatever time you want. O often have a lot of scheduled listings sitting in queue. I post them as my time allows. My biggest problem is I like to do a lot of other things, hike, camp, fish, hunt, visit family and friends and occasionally handle a project around the house or help a friend with one. 

[sin-n-dex]

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@steve_stuff wrote:

OK, after reading your reply - disregardful everything we just said [typed] - We gave you the ship one day set up - With your deal, only way we see to cut down time spent is shipping once a week and packing everything the day before. That at least bunches stuff together.

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It's good advice for others, even if the OP is on another platform and needs to ship every day.

I run auctions to only end on Sunday, I always ship Mondays to get the weekend stuff out. I ship again on Wednesday, and then Thursday and/or Friday depending on volume... I only have so much time to do packages before I leave for work, so I plan to get around 10-12 packages ready in the morning (to drop off at my shipper on my lunch break). If I'm working at home, I probably won't be shipping that day (USA/International packages). I may walk down to the post office to do some Canadian ones, Canada Post is a few blocks from where I live.

C.

[sin-n-dex]

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@mam98031 wrote:

Just close all your listings and then you can repost them when you get healthy again.  You can use the bulk editor to more easily accomplish this.

I sincerely hope your surgery is a success and you have a full and fast recovery !!!  😍

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Thanks. I think it's supposed to be laparoscopy which means quick recovery. I don't have a date scheduled yet, just been told I will need it soon.

I have considered doing time away for 30 days and closing listings down if I can't return in 30 days, but my coworker had an appendectomy by laparoscopy and was back at work in 2 weeks. I did the 30 day thing for Africa and will do it again if I go to Japan in the fall. (I close a week before I leave to give people a chance to receive their stuff and contact me if there's an issue, before I am online irregularly).

While in Africa I only had two problems. One was an unrecognized transaction and eBay said do nothing, they will dispute it. (OK, that's good). The second was an eBay message from someone who ordered in January and didn't get his stamps after 2 months. I explained I was away, please don't open a case, I will refund when I get home (then kept in contact with him when my flight was cancelled and I was stranded for a few days). It's good some customers are understanding.

C.

[keziak]

No, I asked and you gave good answers. Grist for my decision making process.

[keziak]

I would be interested to hear what those other financial processers are if you would private message me.